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Kevin Kelly, the influential founding editor and defining voice of WIRED Magazine, played a pivotal role in its establishment in San Francisco during the advent of the internet era. Known for his unwavering advocacy of technology optimism and the recognition of fundamental truths, Kelly has championed California as a hub for embracing change with minimal resistance. In our latest podcast, we delve into these topics and much more.

The writers' strike seems like it has no end in sight. The directors are next. The "streaming wars" have produced financial losses for all of the studios; the pandemic drove a dagger into theaters; nationalism is impacting American movies overseas; and Hollywood leadership is lacking. Richard Rushfield, a long-time Hollywood journalist and founder of The Ankler, shares his analysis of how bad it really is.

Erik Davis has long recognized the deep intersection of technology, spirituality, mysticism, transcendence, and the power of California. In his works "TechGnosis" and "The Visionary State," and in this week's podcast, he talks about how all of these things are integrated, and how that impacts all Californians, each and every day.

Nicholas Goldberg has spent more than 20 years at the Los Angeles Times. As the editorial page editor and more recently as a columnist and associate editor, he has witnessed remarkable changes both at the paper and in the city. He shares his thoughts on the role of the Times as a local paper, keeping an eye on politicians, L.A.'s long-standing law enforcement problems, rooting out the recent wave of city corruption, and why local politics still

Victoria Chang, the author of six collections of poetry, was recently awarded USC's prestigious 2023 Chowdhury Prize in Literature. Her work covers a wide range of subjects, including art, film, history, and grief and she gives particularly insight into the elusive nature of identity. A graduate of the University of Michigan, Harvard, and Stanford, she shares some of her history and words with us.

Dean King, in his new book, Guardians of the Valley, shares the origin story  of John Muir, which equally involves his editor Robert Underwood Johnson.  Through a powerful personal relationship Muir and Johnson combined Muir’s vision of nature, his elegant writing and Johnson’s penchant for action. Together they got people to come journey to the wilderness, founded the Sierra Club and saved Yosemite. All with a humanity that got people to appreciate nature, more than just preserving it.   

Eric Porter, the author of "A People's History of SFO," sees the nation's No. 1 ranked large airport, San Francisco International, as a metaphor for the Bay Area. He explores how SFO and other airports mirror their cities' art, culture, and values. While emphasizing the significant role public art plays in enhancing the airport experience, he explains how just observing people at any airport reveals much about the community, its workforce, and class structure. 

California is on the verge of becoming the 4th largest economy in the world. Its economic and cultural impact ripples around the globe, and taxes on its tech economy provide a large portion of our state's budget. The city of Palo Alto, home of Stanford University, sits at the epicenter of this modern world. Yet Malcolm Harris, author of the new book "Palo Alto," argues on this week’s podcast that it’s an economy he thinks we should be ashamed of, built on misery and inequity.

Southern California is often associated with beaches, bungalows, and opulence, but there is more to the region than Los Angeles and Hollywood. Riverside, San Bernardino, and other often-overlooked areas reveal a Southern California of warehouses, workers, farms, and freeways that is home to diverse and deeply connected communities. In her latest book, "Mecca," the celebrated novelist Susan Straight tells an epic story that captures these communities and explores the lives of native Californians navigating race, history, and family. Straight, who was born and raised in Riverside and still lives there, has been writing about Southern California and the Inland Empire for over 40 years. She shares some of that story with us. 

Kanishka Cheng, an urban planner, served 15 years in housing and community development in San Francisco government. In this week’s podcast, she shares why she resigned from city government to lead TogetherSF, an organization she co-founded with Mike Moritz, whose recent New York Times op-ed on San Francisco's political dysfunction set off a vigorous debate. TogetherSF is dedicated to activating citizens to address what Cheng says are the issues that San Francisco politicians have been unable or unwilling to solve.

Mark Rozzo, journalist and the author of "Everybody Thought We Were Crazy," shares with us a glimpse of the cultural and cinematic revolution that defined Los Angeles in the 1960s. Rozzo acts as a time machine, taking us back to the era when Dennis Hopper and Brooke Hayward played significant roles in birthing a new cultural and Hollywood movement. One that would ultimately shape both Los Angeles and the film industry for decades to come.

Peggy Orenstein, the Bay Area author, took advantage of her time during the pandemic to embark on a unique adventure at a ranch in Sonoma County. During this conversation and in her book "Unraveling," she shares her story about learning the art of sheep shearing, wool dying, spinning, and even creating a sweater from start to finish. As she recounts her journey, she weaves together themes of freedom, bravery, politics, and modernity.

John Gedmark thinks California can still be a center of aerospace innovation. The founder and CEO of Astranis is building satellites in a building that once produced war ships within walking distance of Chase Center in San Francisco. Gedmark explains how he set out to solve what he sees as one of the world's great problems, bringing broadband internet to the most remote and rural parts of the world. How he set out to do it, the huge technical challenges, why he chose the Bay Area, and how his success is helping the community are all parts of a story he shares with us.

Ali Winston and Darwin BondGraham, two Bay Area investigative journalists, discuss the systemic corruption and brutality in Oakland's police department, and the more than two-decades-long saga of attempted reforms and explosive scandals. In their recent book, Riders Come Out at Night: Brutality, Corruption, and Cover-up in Oakland, they examine the notorious group of sadistic Oakland cops known as “The Riders.”

Lee Herrick is California's newly minted Poet Laureate. The former Fresno Poet Laureate, he also teaches at Fresno City College and the University of Nevada, Reno. He is the author of three noteworthy collections of poetry, "Scar and Flower," Gardening Secrets of the Dead" and "This Many Miles From Desire." Born in South Korea, Herrick discusses his upbringing in Danville and Fresno, his appreciation and love of language, and the role of poetry as a tool for transformation, empowerment, understanding racial division, and seeing both the light and dark of the human condition. 

Erica Gies returns to the California Sun podcast to talk about the water crisis we face today...one of too much water in all the wrong places. Flash flooding and storms in one part of the state, massive droughts in others, climate change, and a growing concrete-built environment, have all impacted our plans for water control. Gies explores other options in her recent op-ed in the New York Times and in this podcast. She suggests the use of unique geologic features called paleo valleys, which could be a way for California to find a sustainable solution to an ongoing water crisis.

Erica Hellerstein, a Bay Area journalist, talks about "Grieving California," her moving story about the grief of living in a state often on fire. She talks of our changing landscape, driven by climate change and natural disasters, and how it drives a feeling of nostalgia for a past that no longer exists, and a psychological toll heightened by fear for the future. As we look for solace in old memories, she says, we must come to terms with the fact that we can never go back to what used to be. As Joni Mitchell said, "you don't know what you've got 'til it's gone."

Mark Thompson was, for over 25 years, one half of the team of Mark and Brian, hosts of the iconic morning radio show on KLOS-FM in Los Angeles. Their show was a mix of comedy and music, and their personalities quickly became woven into the fabric and car culture of the city. Despite initial resistance from the audience, their show became number one in L.A. and was widely imitated. They earned a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, and a place in the Radio Hall of Fame. The Mark and Brian show was a testament to the once-upon-a-time power and intimacy of radio, and Thompson shares how that legacy evolved.

Zev Yaroslavsky, served 20 years on the LA City Council and 20 years on the LA County Board of Supervisors, a distinguished career unmatched in recent memory. Now a faculty member at the UCLA Luskin School of Public Affairs, Yaroslavsky recently saw his daughter-in-law elected to a seat on the Los Angeles City Council. Yaroslavsky reflects on his institutional memory of Los Angeles, comments on the city's evolution, its history of homelessness, and changes to government. He shares his thoughts on the corruption currently occurring at City Hall and the rarified atmosphere of the Board of Supervisors. While he appreciates the academic life he leads, we get the sense that there is a certain something that he misses about being in the arena.

Leighton Woodhouse, a Bay Area journalist and filmmaker, looks at homelessness, fentanyl, and the streets of our California cities through the lenses of our recent elections, his experiences growing up in the Bay Area, and his recent eye-opening visit to Portland. He wonders if there can ever be a policy solution to our urban problems, if Los Angeles will be the new San Francisco, and whether we’ve passed our prime as a state and a nation.